Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s by
Romanelli 
- Chart updated: 07/24/2025 15:15
- (Created: 12/04/2011 20:30).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
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Produced By GEORGE DRAKOULIAS
1. Twice As Hard
2. Jealous Again
3. Sister Luck
4. Could I've Been So Blind
5. Seeing Things
6. Hard To Handle
7. Thick N' Thin
8. She Talks To Angels
9. Struttin' Blues
10. Stare It Cold
The debut album from The Black Crowes came from almost nowhere...The Georgia Satellites had already come from that place four years earlier. But The Black Crowes had more swagger, and they had better songs. And on this album, they reached a commercial peak that they would never again get close to, but they would become more adventerous and improve on the blueprint they drew up here. The big single was a smart Otis Redding cover ("Hard To Handle), and they also scored with "Jealous Again" and "She Talks To Angels".
"Stare It Cold" and "Seeing Things" are standouts, giving a glimpse at how much better they would become after this album,. and after replacing guitarist Jeff Cease with Marc Ford. This is a fine debut album that would be quickly overshadowed by their next two albums. It's the real return of Southern rock, years after the Skynyrd plane crash effectively ended it. [First added to this chart: 12/04/2011]
Produced By BRIAN PAULSON & WILCO
1. I Must Be High
2. Casino Queen
3. Box Full Of Letters
4. Shouldn’t Be Ashamed
5. Pick Up The Change
6. I Thought I Held You
7. That’s Not The Issue
8. It’s Just That Simple
9. Should’ve Been In Love
10. Passenger Side
11. Dash 7
12. Blue Eyed Soul
13. Too Far Apart
When Uncle Tupelo split up, Jay Farrar formed Son Volt. Jeff Tweedy formed Wilco…and got the rest of the band in the divorce. Tweedy was in a position to be like George Harrison on All Things Must Pass, or even like Stevie Nicks on Bella Donna: a player who had played second fiddle with minimal songwriting contributions suddenly able to burst out on his own with an amazing output. Tweedy has been pretty prolific since the breakup of Tupelo, but his first effort with Wilco, A.M., is hardly his strongest effort. The only truly alt-country album by Wilco, it has its moments, but it gets its butt kicked by Son Volt’s Trace, and it lacks the adventurous spirit of Uncle Tupelo, and especially of the later Wilco albums. A.M. is more of a breakup album than anything else, really…and you have to wonder if the songs are directed towards Farrar. The world of A.M. is very small…the world of Wilco would get a lot bigger in a hurry, as the band would give up on being a straight alt-country unit and explore many other great directions.
A.M. does have some really great moments. The 1-2 punch of “I Must Be High” and “Casino Queen”, complete with clanking bottles, is promising, but things come down from there. “Passenger Side” is one of Tweedy’s finest songs, and the John Stirratt penned “It’s Just That Simple” is lovely. Instrumentally, the band, particularly Brian Henneman from The Bottle Rockets, is excellent. The album sounds great, and the overall songwriting is strong, but it’s ultimately hard to listen to A.M. without making a lot of comparisons…all of which A.M. loses. Maybe, or maybe not fair, but that’s what it is. This album fails against the body of work of Uncle Tupelo and Wilco itself, and fails against its direct competitor, Trace. On its own, it’s a good, not great album, and it’s interesting to hear how Wilco started out. [First added to this chart: 12/05/2011]
Produced By JERRY HARRISON
1. The Big Burn
2. What's Behind Your Coat?
3. Yellar
4. The Third Rail
5. Dr. Jerome (Love Tub, Doctor)
6. Suddenly
7. Piss Tongue
8. Light A Candle For Me
9. It's A Fast Horizon
10. Raga
11. The Doubter's Glass
12. Englewood
The Bogmen's debut album is a hoot. Even though it's a bit over produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads, this is a band that sounds like it's having the time of their lives. They are led by singer Billy Campion, who sounds like he's about to go insane at any moment, and guitarist Bill Ryan. The centerpiece is the excellent "Suddenly", a schizophrenic break up song that finds the breakee completely falling into mental breakdown. The rest of the album is pretty fun, but "Suddenly", a song that should have been a hit, stays with you for awhile.
The band only recorded one more album before splitting in 1999, in large part because of Campion's drug problems. 40 Million was a promising debut that was never followed up with success. But it's a rocking good time, worth having a listen to. [First added to this chart: 12/10/2011]

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Produced By DEPECHE MODE & FLOOD
1. World In My Eyes
2. Sweetest Perfection
3. Personal Jesus
4. Halo
5. Waiting For The Night
6. Enjoy The Silence
7. Policy Of Truth
8. Blue Dress
9. Clean
During the 1980’s, I never quite got Depeche Mode. After all, it was cheesy synth dance music, and the younger me was all about guitars, dammit. Then, at the dawn of the 90’s, came Violator, and a whole new understanding of what Depeche Mode was really all about. There was nothing soft or cheesy about what was happening on this album, and it was immediately apparent that this band had grown a lot from the days of lite pop songs like “Just Can’t Get Enough” that had ruled the waves of KROQ. THIS Depeche Mode was serious, could really play, was growing fast, and more than anything else, had real and powerful songwriting at their disposal. A band that had featured very little to no guitars during the 80’s now had guitarist Martin Gore as their principal songwriter, adding a depth to their music that had been sorely missed in their early days. For me, Violator changed the way I saw Depeche Mode forever…both for future and for past releases. From afterthought to a seriously great band in one album for me. Sometimes things just work out for the best.
Not to say that Violator isn’t a dance record. And the fact is, it was the album that put them on the charts in the United States. It’s a pop record. It’s a pop gem. From the opening synth of “World In My Eyes”, you get right away that it’s also a pretty dark record. Before you know it, you’re rocking to the exceptional “Personal Jesus”, and basking in the glory of great songs like “Enjoy The Silence”, “Halo”, and “Policy Of Truth”. Together with Black Celebration and Music For The Masses, Violator marks the end of a great trilogy of albums that was the peak of Depeche Mode. And despite the critical mixed bag of reviews it got (some dismissed it as a straight pop album, which is absurd), this is the one album by this band you should definitely end up with. Violator is as close to perfection as they ever got, and it’s one that you should definitely own. Dismiss this as pop if you must…but I say it would be a much better world if all pop aspired to be like Violator. [First added to this chart: 06/03/2013]
Produced By DAVITT SIGERSON, ERIC ROSE, IAN STANLEY & TORI AMOS
1. Crucify
2. Girl
3. Silent All These Years
4. Precious Things
5. Winter
6. Happy Phantom
7. China
8. Leather
9. Mother
10. Tear In Your Hand
11. Me And A Gun
12. Little Earthquakes
Little Earthquakes, the debut solo album from Tori Amos, is still by far her best work. Coming from almost nowhere (ala Alanis), jump starting rock for women (ala Alanis) and leaving behind an embarrassing previous recorded legacy (ala Alanis), Amos hit the ground running with just her piano and a stunning set of amazing songs. It's all great stuff here..."Me And A Gun", "Leather", "Crucify", "Silent All These Years" are personal and powerful pieces of Amos and her personal life. Earthquakes is just a great album.
She became better known for he later treatment of songs like "Smells Like Teen Spirit", and while her later albums have been very good, she's never topped her debut. Little Earthquakes is the one by her that you really should have. [First added to this chart: 12/05/2011]
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s composition
Year | Albums | % | |
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1990 | 9 | 9% | |
1991 | 11 | 11% | |
1992 | 15 | 15% | |
1993 | 17 | 17% | |
1994 | 13 | 13% | |
1995 | 11 | 11% | |
1996 | 6 | 6% | |
1997 | 9 | 9% | |
1998 | 7 | 7% | |
1999 | 2 | 2% |
Artist | Albums | % | |
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Uncle Tupelo | 4 | 4% | |
Nirvana | 3 | 3% | |
Pearl Jam | 3 | 3% | |
Wilco | 2 | 2% | |
The Jayhawks | 2 | 2% | |
Radiohead | 2 | 2% | |
The Lemonheads | 2 | 2% | |
Show all |
Country | Albums | % | |
---|---|---|---|
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78 | 78% | |
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11 | 11% | |
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3 | 3% | |
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3 | 3% | |
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2 | 2% | |
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1 | 1% | |
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1 | 1% | |
Show all |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s chart changes
Biggest climbers |
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![]() Sister Sweetly by Big Head Todd & The Monsters |
Biggest fallers |
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![]() No Quarter: Jimmy Page And Robert Plant Unledded by Jimmy Page & Robert Plant |
![]() Grave Dancers Union by Soul Asylum |
![]() Grace by Jeff Buckley |
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s ratings

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Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 45 ratings for this chart.
Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
---|---|---|---|---|
50/100 ![]() | 02/09/2023 22:04 | ![]() | ![]() | 85/100 |
65/100 ![]() | 02/06/2023 02:26 | jonatascv1990 | ![]() | 78/100 |
100/100 ![]() | 02/10/2022 00:40 | ![]() | ![]() | 86/100 |
90/100 ![]() | 06/26/2021 23:01 | ![]() | ![]() | 86/100 |
100/100 ![]() | 05/03/2021 09:53 | ![]() | ![]() | 96/100 |
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This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 86.8/100, a mean average of 85.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 87.1/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 17.1.
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Good chart!

Good descriptions and a bunch of new records for me to check out. Favorited.
This is an excellent list. Lots of "alt-country" here, which is much more Replacements-Meets-Bruce Springsteen than traditional folk or country.

I can't really give a good rating because I haven't listened to 96 of these albums, but I just want to say that I am convinced that Romanelli and AM are the same person
Great chart

I really appreciate some of the more personal picks. This is a really good chart. 14 albums in common is pretty good. Perhaps one day I'll check out Uncle Tupelo.

Really love the detailed notes and careful selections!! I still feel it's a little too focused on American alt-rock for my liking however, would be nice to see some electronic releases/more hip hop besides Public Enemy at no.73!

23 albums in common. Solid other picks!
awesome chart!

Ahhh... That's a great chart right there.
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